Make This Your Last Time | Page 10 of 34

February 10, 2023April 24, 2024 - 1 Comment

Using Artificial Intelligence (AI) to Learn the Law for the Bar Exam

A bar taker asked me to explain supplemental jurisdiction with an example. At 1:27 in the morning.

I was able to send her a response at 1:36 AM (9 minutes later)—without having a working knowledge of supplemental jurisdiction, and without flipping through outlines or Googling hypos.

How? I’ll show you below. (With examples using supplemental jurisdiction, Contracts remedies, and rule against perpetuities.)

The problem: When someone asks me about some law, I have to research it and explain it.

Or if you’re confused about how a rule works, you have to make sense of it theoretically and look at examples and hypos. How are you going to memorize (and use) the rule without understanding it?

This takes time and mental processing. And I don’t have the energy especially this late at night. Plus, I’m not a tutor, and people for some reason seem to think they can ask me random questions about supplemental jurisdiction instead of the tutor they pay thousands of dollars for (but I have a soft spot for people struggling with this death ritual).

Here’s an idea you can try for yourself if you’re stuck and not understanding a bar exam rule.

January 27, 2023December 15, 2023 - 3 Comments

How to Pass the California Bar Exam with a Focused Approach of Discipline and Consistency

Got yet another success story, by a reader who shared with me a very detailed and specific recap of her journey to pass the 2020 February California Bar Exam (26.8% pass rate) on her second try.

It was too good not to share.

Before:

Big bar course made her “dumber,” wasted her time, DRAINED her energy and time. She was too wiped out to memorize or practice
Did not even know how to START any essay
Panic, doubts, insecurities, mind games, pressure

After:

Practical and effective approach
Used the right tools for her
Enjoyed herself because she could see herself getting better

Key takeaways and full story below…

January 25, 2023November 3, 2023 - No Comments

Constitutional Law Updates for 2023 and Beyond: What Are Kennedy and Dobbs and What to Do About Them?

There were two recent major changes in constitutional law—based on Kennedy (2022) “abandoning” the Lemon test and based on Dobbs (2022) revising abortion’s status as a fundamental right.

First, note that the NCBE drafts and pre-tests questions years in advance. See these NCBE statements about the MBE and the MEE. These statements are in turn linked in this NCBE statement about the 2022 SCOTUS decisions and the bar exam.

Probably a similar story for essays in various jurisdictions, though each state may do it differently.

This means that you might see questions in these areas and get credit for currently correct answers, or they might replace the questions with backups or something. Who knows.

I think it’s unlikely you’ll encounter questions in these areas. But you can control how to respond if you do see these issues.

January 20, 2023March 28, 2023 - No Comments

Classic Repeater Story of Passing the CA Bar Exam on Her Second Try

Stephanie was a classic repeater of the California Bar Exam, who followed a big box course on her first try and then switched to better (more efficient and effective) learning strategies on her second, successful try.

It’s a familiar story you see all the time. Too many stories of repeaters regretting using Barbri and other cookie-cutter programs.

Here’s how she did it and the tools she used to do it:

January 20, 2023January 25, 2023 - No Comments

Don’t obsess over the “best” bar exam supplement. Be the BEST STUDENT instead.

This rant was inspired by a moment I had in therapy, a new thing that I started in December. Yeah, I don’t do New Year’s resolutions. Anyway, I’ll tie this back to the therapy story later.

Bar exam takers have passed using Barbri.

People have passed using Themis.

People have passed using Kaplan Bar Review…

And this is despite all the shit I say about Kaplan because they’re like Olive Garden trying to be everything which ends up being bland and giving you diarrhea. Just look at how many fucking tests they prep for LOL